DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CAKE

 Fudgy Vegan Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Crumble Topping

Click here to watch this recipe being made

 

Makes 3 10" snaking cakes

• 1 1/2 cups (360g) non dairy milk
  
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  
• 3 cups (400g) all purpose flour
• 1 cup (80g) unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 2 1/4 cups (485g) granulated sugar
• 1 cup (255g) unsweetened apple sauce
• 1 cup (200g)vegetable oil
  
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup hot water
• 1 1/2 tsp instant espresso powder      

CRUMBLE TOPPING

• 210 g flour
• 2 tsp. cornstarch
• 275g sugar
• 130 g dark cocoa powder--sifted
• 170 g Earth balance-melted
• 4g- 1 tsp kosher salt
  

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees and spray (3) 10″ cake pans with nonstick spray and line the bottom with parchment paper. 

 

Mix together the milk and vinegar and set aside to curdle (making a vegan buttermilk)

 

Make the crumble topping by mixing together all ingredients well, except for the butter. Once well mixed, pour in the melted butter and use your hands to mix, leaving marble sized crumbles. Bake at 300 degrees for 20 minutes and cool completely. 

 

Turn oven up to 350

 Make the cake:

Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.

 

In a large bowl, either whisking by hand or with an electric mixer, combine the sugar, apple sauce, oil, and vanilla. 

 

In a separate bowl mix together the hot water and espresso powder, making a "coffee". Set aside.

 

To the sugar mixture, alternate adding the milk and dry ingredients, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Stop and scrape down the bowl about halfway through.

 

Once that’s smooth, slowly mix in the hot espresso. Now the batter will be very thin.

Pour the batter into the cake pans and bake for 25 minutes-open the oven and carefully top the cake with chocolate crumbles and continue to bake another 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. 

 

Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 20 minutes, then remove from the pans. Let them completely cool at room temperature before wrapping. 

 

Makes three one-layer cakes.

Amazing Eggplant

 Pickled Eggplant

3 small-med sized Eggplant -sliced into strips

Kosher salt

1 Cup white Vinegar

2 1/4 cup Water

4 cloves Garlic, sliced into thin strips

2-4 dried hot Peppers, chopped

1 Tbsp Oregano-dried

1 Tbsp. Basil-dried

Extra virgin Olive oil

Sterilize a medium sized jar.  

Place eggplant in a colander with paper towels on the bottom.

Sprinkle a generous amount on the eggplant, tossing, salting it all well.

Place a plate ontop of it with some sort of weight to press it down.

Let is sit 30 minutes.

Place Vinegar and water in a medium sized pot and bring to a boil.

After 30 minutes, rinse the eggplant with water until twice to rinse off most of the salt. Squeeze dry with your hands and add it to the vinegar, Simmer the eggplant about 10 minutes in the vinegar/water until the strip are tender but not mushy..

Stain and squeeze dry. Toss the eggplant with the basil, oregano, and pepper flakes.

layer in a jar, adding olive oil as you go and top with a 1/4 to 1/2 inch of oil.

Seal and place in the fridge for 7 days to marinate. 

Eat within 2 weeks.

My favorite way to Enjoy this is on n a good cracker topped with vegan goat cheese